卡爾文·羅賓遜和安立甘公教會的背景

在2024年9月之前，卡爾文·羅賓遜是北歐公教會（Nordic Catholic Church，一個主要位於斯堪的納維亞和英國的老派天主教會）的會長。2023年10月，羅賓遜參訪了在佛羅里達州奧蘭多舉行的安立甘公教會的教省主教會議，隨後表示有興趣在美國擔任教區會長。經過必要程序後，他被接納並獲准在密歇根州大急流城聖保羅教區任職。截至2025年1月29日，他在安立甘公教會任職已超過四個月。

安立甘公教會為何採取行動？

當羅賓遜被安立甘公教會接納時，他被告知政治活動家和教區會長的職務是有所區別的。他的主教們明確告訴他，他被接納入教會是為了服務教區，因此他必須避免其之前作為電視主持人、博客和社群媒體網紅時的挑釁性政治行為。但他並未遵守，因此，在全國反墮胎峰會上發生的事件並非個案。

如羅賓遜本人所說，「背景很重要」。安立甘公教會聘用他，不是要他擔任官方發言人、社群媒體網紅，或在網路文化戰爭中挑釁「歇斯底里的自由派」（他的用詞）；他是被安立甘公教會的主教授權擔任教區會長。他多次被警告不要在全國反墮胎大會上展現這種行為，但他沒有遵守。因此，他在安立甘公教會的任職執照被撤銷。主教們的這一決定符合安立甘公教會的教規。

這對卡爾文·羅賓遜意味著什麼？

羅賓遜並未被安立甘公教會「褫奪聖職」或「免職」。這些需要一個漫長的教會法的程序。他仍然是一名會長，可以自由返回北歐公教會、英格蘭自由安立甘教會或英國聖公會——自2022年以來，他曾加入並隨後離開的三個教會。他也可以尋求加入新的教會或繼續獨立的網路事工。但他不能在安立甘公教會或其合作教會任職。

安立甘公教會的立場是什麼？

安立甘公教會堅持其原始聲明。羅賓遜在全國反墮胎峰會上表現出的行為是有害的、分裂的，且違背基督教仁愛的信條。會長當然要支持教會關於生命神聖性和其他教義問題的教導；但他們不應挑釁、煽動或對敵人表現出不仁慈的行為。這不是「覺醒」教義；這是基本的基督教教導，也符合安立甘公教會對其會長的期望。

第一篇聲明：

Press Release on Calvin Robinson (2/3/2025)

Background on Calvin Robinson and the ACC.

Prior to September of 2024, Calvin Robinson was a priest of the Nordic Catholic Church, an Old Catholic Church based primarily in Scandinavia and the UK. In October of 2023, Robinson visited the ACC’s Provincial Synod in Orlando, FL and subsequently expressed an interest in serving a parish in the US. After undergoing the necessary procedures, he was received in orders and licensed to serve at the parish of St. Paul’s, Grand Rapids, MI. As of January 29th, 2025, he had served in the ACC a little over four months.

Why did the ACC take action?

When Robinson was received into the ACC, he was told that there was a distinction of offices between political activist and parish priest. His bishops made it clear to him that he had been received into the Church to minister to a parish, and as such, he would have to eschew the provocative political behavior that characterized his prior career as a TV presenter, blogger, and social media influencer. He has not done so, and what happened at the National Right to Life Summit was not an isolated incident.

As Robinson himself has said, “context is key.” He was not hired by the ACC to be an official spokesman, social media influencer, or to provoke the “hysterical liberals” (his words) in online culture wars; he was licensed by an ACC bishop to serve as a parish priest. He was repeatedly warned not to engage in the sort of behavior that he displayed at the National Right to Life Conference, and he did not comply. As such, his license to serve in the ACC was revoked. In doing so, the bishops acted in accordance with ACC canons.

What does this mean for Calvin Robinson?

Robinson has not been “defrocked” or “deposed” by the ACC. Those require an extended canonical process. He is still a priest and is free to return to the Nordic Catholic Church, the Free Church of England, or the Church of England, the three Churches, which since 2022, he has been a member of and subsequently left. He may also seek a new Church to affiliate with or continue an independent online ministry. What he may not do is serve in the ACC or with its ecumenical partners.

Where does the ACC stand?

The ACC stands by its original statement. The sort of conduct Robinson displayed at the National Right to Life Summit is harmful, divisive, and contrary to the tenets of Christian charity. Priests are certainly called to support the Church’s teaching on the sanctity of life and on a range of other doctrinal issues; but they are not called to provoke, to troll, or to behave uncharitably, even to their foes. This is not “woke” doctrine; it is basic Christian teaching and consistent with the expectations the ACC has of its priests.